A poor first half against Southland left the New Zealand Heartland XV out of contention for the Michael Jones trophy at the Jock Hobbs Memorial Under 19 tournament in Taupo on Wednesday.
Heartland was beaten 36-8, being outscored four tries to one in the semifinal matchup.
Assistant coach Justin Lock said the team put the ball out on the full on their first three exits of the match and it didn't get much better after that, as missed lineouts and fumbles left them stuck in their own 30m area with around 10 per cent of the possession.
"They dominated the game, they put us under a huge amount of pressure.
"It was hard to watch the first half."
Given they were on the back foot, Lock was happy the team was only trailing 10-3 late in the half, however Southland got their second converted try before the break.